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April 01, 2007 at 08:00 PM
So we keep hearing the buzzword about “boutique” practices that offer advice across multiple areas or disciplines, such as financial planning, estate planning and tax planning. I commonly refer to this type of practice as a “multi-disciplinary practice” or MDP. You may be asking yourself how you can get on the “boutique bandwagon” so you don’t miss the next great trend in our industry.
A true MDP is made up of multiple professionals with different yet complementary areas of expertise, such as accountants, lawyers and financial advisors. Let’s say you are a financial advisor operating as a sole practitioner. The idea of building an MDP probably seems like a daunting if not impossible task. It can take years to develop long-term, mutually beneficial relationships with other service professionals. While I would encourage any serious financial professional to actively pursue building an MDP, I would encourage the same financial professional to simultaneously embark on a personal program of self-improvement and education. In other words, create your own personal MDP by expanding the areas of advice you can offer within the area of financial services.
If you concentrate on selling a single product like fixed indexed annuities, look at widening your services. Why not have as many financial weapons in your arsenal from which to utilize for your clients? A financial advisor should have the entire universe of investment options at his disposal and therefore no limitations in what he can offer his clients.
How you do this starts with your own education and training. Your options are plentiful – from acquiring additional licenses like the Registered Investment Advisor to attaining professional designations that involve coursework, ongoing education and adherence to strict codes of ethics. Once you begin to expand the areas of advice that you offer, you will be creating your own, self-styled MDP within the financial services industry – something you can achieve on your own quickly and without other professionals.
